Developing Sales and Operations Execution in Engineer-to-Order Environment
Välimaa, Laura (2023)
Välimaa, Laura
2023
Tuotantotalouden DI-ohjelma - Master's Programme in Industrial Engineering and Management
Johtamisen ja talouden tiedekunta - Faculty of Management and Business
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Hyväksymispäivämäärä
2023-10-03
Julkaisun pysyvä osoite on
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:tuni-202309278483
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:tuni-202309278483
Tiivistelmä
Succeeding in today's markets is not easy; businesses must compete in various areas, such as price, quality, delivery time, operational cost-efficiency, and flexibility. Simultaneously, customer demand is in constant change, and it is impossible to predict in advance the exact type and quantity of products customers will desire. Demand uncertainty is particularly typical in Engineer-to-Order (ETO) environments, where items are designed, manufactured, and delivered to meet customers’ unique requirements. In such environments, production planning becomes especially challenging yet crucial. Nevertheless, production planning research has primarily focused on other manufacturing contexts. Therefore, this study investigated short-term sales and production planning in the ETO environment.
The research was conducted as a case study within the company operating in the ETO environment. The short-term sales and production planning process of the case company was defined many years ago and has not been actively developed since. Instead, the process has just evolved over time into its present form. Although the process has been practical, some challenges have arisen. Furthermore, the current process has not been completely defined and documented. As a result, the case company noticed the need to describe and analyze its process to improve it.
Accordingly, the objective of the study was to describe the company's current short-term sales and production planning process and analyze its current state. Additionally, based on the current state analysis, the aim was to provide comprehensive suggestions for developing the process in the future. The study employed multiple methods, including observation, questionnaires, and interviews. In addition, the study benchmarked corresponding processes in three other companies to create an understanding of alternative ways to implement the process. The results of the research included both verbal and visual descriptions of the case company's current short-term sales and production planning process, a textual analysis of the process's current state, and concrete development suggestions for the company's process improvement.
Several challenges related to the company's process were identified in the study, leading to identifying areas requiring development focus. The research indicates that the company's current process does not necessitate structural or significant changes. Instead, several mi-nor development actions can address the identified challenges and help the company achieve an optimal process. Primary actions should involve establishing a shared information-sharing platform for process stakeholders, naming a process owner, improving process-related decision-making, and facilitating optimization across the entire production plan. In a more general sense, the research indicates that companies should enhance both vertical and horizontal integration to optimize short-term production planning and related decision-making. Furthermore, ETO companies should leverage tools specifically tailored to their environment as part of the process.
The conducted research aligns with the existing literature in multiple ways. The literature recognizes similar process stages, involved stakeholders, and typical challenges associated with the process. Moreover, the research supplements the literature by providing practical insights into how the process can be implemented in a complex and unique product manufacturing environment. In the future, the process should be studied in multiple ETO companies. Additionally, research should explore how modern technology and tools could be leveraged in the execution of the process.
The research was conducted as a case study within the company operating in the ETO environment. The short-term sales and production planning process of the case company was defined many years ago and has not been actively developed since. Instead, the process has just evolved over time into its present form. Although the process has been practical, some challenges have arisen. Furthermore, the current process has not been completely defined and documented. As a result, the case company noticed the need to describe and analyze its process to improve it.
Accordingly, the objective of the study was to describe the company's current short-term sales and production planning process and analyze its current state. Additionally, based on the current state analysis, the aim was to provide comprehensive suggestions for developing the process in the future. The study employed multiple methods, including observation, questionnaires, and interviews. In addition, the study benchmarked corresponding processes in three other companies to create an understanding of alternative ways to implement the process. The results of the research included both verbal and visual descriptions of the case company's current short-term sales and production planning process, a textual analysis of the process's current state, and concrete development suggestions for the company's process improvement.
Several challenges related to the company's process were identified in the study, leading to identifying areas requiring development focus. The research indicates that the company's current process does not necessitate structural or significant changes. Instead, several mi-nor development actions can address the identified challenges and help the company achieve an optimal process. Primary actions should involve establishing a shared information-sharing platform for process stakeholders, naming a process owner, improving process-related decision-making, and facilitating optimization across the entire production plan. In a more general sense, the research indicates that companies should enhance both vertical and horizontal integration to optimize short-term production planning and related decision-making. Furthermore, ETO companies should leverage tools specifically tailored to their environment as part of the process.
The conducted research aligns with the existing literature in multiple ways. The literature recognizes similar process stages, involved stakeholders, and typical challenges associated with the process. Moreover, the research supplements the literature by providing practical insights into how the process can be implemented in a complex and unique product manufacturing environment. In the future, the process should be studied in multiple ETO companies. Additionally, research should explore how modern technology and tools could be leveraged in the execution of the process.